Blue-collar jobs are considered “working class” jobs, which are typically manual labor and paid hourly. The term originated in the 1920s when blue-collar workers—such as those in mining and construction—wore darker color clothes (e.g. jeans, overalls, etc.) to hide dirt.

Why is it called white-collar?

Etymology. The term refers to the white dress shirts of male office workers common through most of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in Western countries, as opposed to the blue overalls worn by many manual laborers.

Why do they call it blue collar and white-collar?

The phrases “blue collar” and “white collar” arose as a literal description of the color of workers' collars in particular jobs. Those doing manual labor tended to wear blue uniforms, while those in white-collar jobs wore white dress shirts. The term emerged in the US in the early 20th century.